The Wisconsin Badgers are 7–1–1 against the spread and 4–5 straight up in their last nine games against the Michigan Wolverines. The Badgers will try to pull off another upset and get a third straight win over Michigan this Saturday in Ann Arbor.

Wisconsin is a 10.5-point road underdog at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. Each of the last two games in this head-to-head series have gone Wisconsin’s way by at least 20 points, but those came back in 2009 and 2010.

The season is just one month old, but already the Badgers have turned some heads as a strong underdog performer. Wisconsin gutted out a 16–14 win over LSU as a 12.5-point underdog in its season opener, and made a resounding statement last Saturday with a 30–6 win as a 3.5-point underdog against Michigan State.

The Badgers have allowed just 11.8 points per game thus far this season and are 5–1 SU and ATS over their last six games. In the team’s last eight road games against Big Ten opponents, the Badgers are 8–0 SU and 5–3 ATS per the OddsShark College Football Database.

Like Wisconsin, Michigan has dominated its opponents on defense this season, allowing only 13.8 points per game through four games. But unlike the Badgers, the Wolverines have also been consistently dominating on offense, blowing opponents away with 52 points per game over that stretch.

While the offense has looked great early, Michigan has been a heavy favorite in every game and hasn’t faced a defense of Wisconsin’s caliber yet. The Wolverines are 10–1 SU and 7–4 ATS in their last 11 games as a betting favorite.

This game will be an important one in determining the early pecking order in the Big Ten. Michigan has looked like the playoff contender it was projected to be so far this season, but a win over a quality team like Wisconsin would solidify the team’s status. For Wisconsin, a win would break the race for the Big Ten title wide open and propel the Badgers into the playoff conversation.